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Oct 23 WeFitMe, ModCloth, and Lucy - Oh My!

Let's get this community started

We're on a mission to help women find clothes that fit, look fabulous, and have a LOT more fun doing it. They should know they're not alone and if they're struggling in the dressing room, it's not them it's the clothes. Being with other women with the same fit challenges can do that.

But how do you start a community from scratch? YOU JUST START. You find a few people of the type you want to connect, and you try to connect them. unfortunately, women of the same body shape and size don't normally just hang out together (unless they're identical twins). But I have to start somewhere, so why not start hosting events at retailers?

So that's what we're doing. And we could not be more honored that ModCloth, a brand I have long admired, agreed to host our first event at their beautiful downtown Portland pop-up store. ModCloth is a perfect partner for us too. They are pioneering a new level of customer-focus, designing garments inspired by feedback from their own community. It seems odd that designing products based on real customer feedback is considered innovative, but that's fashion for you.

ModCloth proved their pioneering spirit by hosting WeFitMe's very first event. And for that, I'll always be grateful. As a practical matter, we needed to host the event at an open-minded retailer that stocks a wide range of sizes.and variety of looks we could try on. And frankly, that's hard to find in any city. .

MODCLOTH (and WeFitMe) IRL (In Real Life)

Top L The community starts. Top R: Sue's fitting room is on hold while she looks around, Bottom L: Caitlin Donovan tells us about ModCloth and their Fit Shop, Bottom R: The beautiful table by ModCloth and WeFitMe.

We had SO MUCH FUN at our first live meetup of the WeFitMe community at the Portland, OR ModCloth IRL store! We're calling our community members "Shape Sisters", and about 10 of them came and helped each other find great looks. An Apple Shape Sister who had almost given up on finding jeans that fit found some (and she now says she's going to order more!). A Pear Shape Sister bought a dress she never even would have tried on; all it took was her Shape Sisters giving her the honest feedback and encouragement she needed to try something new. We all had a great time!

This event was fantastic!...I now own a great pair of jeans and a velvet dress jacket that I can use for any occasion! 

— Angie G.

Was great to meet some new ladies and shop together. I got two new dresses for fall that I love!

— Monica

Lucy Athleticwear - Our Second Event

News about what WeFitMe is doing travels fast. I got an email one day from the Lucy store in Bridgeport Village. They said Lucy was about to launch extended sizes (yahoo!) and wondered if we would join them for an event to celebrate on their anniversary! I said:

HECK YEAH!

— Me

Lucy quality for Plus-sized women? We'll drink to that!

We met last night to help Lucy celebrate their anniversary and check out their new extended size line. The cool part was that all of our Shape Sisters were Apples. It was the perfect time to see how a group of apples could help each other. And it really did. A few of us had never considered shopping at Lucy before because "they just don't sell anything for my shape and size".

Quotes from the night: "I don't remember the last time I walked into a store and found 2 or 3 pairs of pants that looked good on me" and "Wow it really is more fun to shop together!"

Again, HUGE THANKS to Lucy Athleticwear for hosting us!

Chantal helped us set up and then brought us all the best stuff. These leggings were really soft.

JOIN US!

If you're in Portland, OR and want to get in these events, sign up for our MeetUp Group: WeFitMe in Portland be sure to RSVP for the event after you join the MeetUp group.If you're in Seattle,WA sign up here: WeFitMe in SeattleWe are already over 20 Shape Sisters! Our first event is November 20 at the wonderful Belltown boutique called Sassafras, which is all about locally-designed and produced fashion in a range of sizes and styles.

Community

It's Halloween! Know what that means? Wigs!

That's right, wigs. in the last blog post I wrote about how sometimes it's hard to change your style of dress and how you can sneak up on a new style by using wigs.

This one goes for guys too. If you follow the tech startup scene, you might have heard of the Tim Ferris podcast (Four Hour Workweek). Both he and fellow tech investor (and sometimes Shark Tank guest shark) Chris Sacca are ardent fans of the mind-altering fun properties of wigs, though they prefer the Mullet wig: " Mullet wigs change everything", says Sacca. I agree!

Now is the time to get your wig because they're in season.

Check this Out

Read about how one young fashion design student is shaking up the fashion industry at its roots: Design School. She fought to get her prestigious design school to buy dress forms (the mannequins they use to design clothes) in larger sizes so she could learn how to make clothes for women "like her". Why the fight for plus-size mannequins matters

Who knew pockets in women's clothing was a political issue? "The less women could carry, the less freedom they had. Take away pockets happily hidden under garments, and you limit women’s ability to navigate public spaces, to carry seditious (or merely amorous) writing, or to travel unaccompanied". The Political History of Pockets.

QUICK VIDEO: You might have seen this already, but it's so damned awesome that you might need to watch it again. Be the Fiercest